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ANIMAL TRACKS Session Focus Children will start to recognise some animal tracks and create their own mini-habitat. Curriculum Links PSHEE (PSED): Will persevere with activities; Can work cooperatively with others. Maths: Talks about position, direction, shape and pattern. Science: Sorts and classifies animals according to their characteristics. DT: Builds for a purpose; Adapts their design to improve stability. Resources Animal Tracks ID Sheet; Animal tracks templates; (scroll down) flour in a shaker natural materials. Preparation Make your own animal tracks templates beforehand using the sheets provided. Risk Assessments Generic Site RA. PIONEER SCHEME SECTION OBJECTIVES LEVEL 6 WELLBEING & EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE • Questions ideas and concepts and investigates links between classroom and outdoor learning. SELF MANAGEMENT OF RISK • Show developing knowledge of care for self & others. ENVIRONMENTALL Y FRIENDLY • Starting to links cause and effect to environmental issues. CREATIVITY & IMAGINATION • Talk about their design and how they adapted it. RESILIENCE & PROBLEM SOLVING • Willing to stick at activities they find difficult. ENVIRONMENT • Studies the outdoor environment in different seasons. • Can talk about how their outdoor environment changes throughout the year and why. SHELTER BUILDING • Learn to build a lean-to shelter using 2 forked poles against a tree/ stick and a support. PHYSICAL AND PRACTICAL OUTDOOR SKILLS • Shows good control, coordination and agility in both fine and gross motor skills. • Uses techniques such as sand, light and shadows to help spot species tracks. • Can talk about challenging moments in a positive light. CORE VALUES O U T D O O R L E A R N I N G M A D E E A S Y PIONEER SCHEME © CORE VALUES O U T D O O R L E A R N I N G M A D E E A S Y REVIEW & REFLECT www.outdoorlearningmadeeasy.co.uk © Session Outline Intro • Ask the children which animals they think may live in, or visit, their outdoor area. How do they know? Are there any animals which may live/ visit which they can’t see? What about any nocturnal animals? • What signs could indicate certain species? (animal tracks, footprints, droppings, nibbling of leaves, burrows, predators, etc) • Give the children time to explore their outdoor area to look for signs of animals for the intro. Development • Split the children into small groups & explain that the children are going to make their own animal tracks using a template and flour to lead to a mini-animal home, which they can build using natural materials. (Demonstrate how to use the template & flour to leave a footprint.) • The children should think about which animal they have chosen, where the animal home is located and how it is built. (You could teach them the technique for a small lean-to shelter.) • Discuss why flour is used (You can see it clearly but it is biodegradable.) • Allow time for each group to follow others’ tracks to see their habitats & guess which animal they are for. • Differentiation: Mixed ability. HA- Thinks carefully about the layout of their flour tracks and habitat.. LA- Prompts for ideas and building skills. Extension: Put sand & bait down to attract animals & view any footprints in the sand the next morning. SESSION REFLECTIONS OUTDOOR SKILLS OUTDOOR SKILLS ANIMALS INCLUDING ENVIRON ED
![Photo: Cynthia Wolf - Amigos BravosA Field Guide to Animal Tracks. Peterson Field Guide Series. Houghton Mifflin Co. Boston. [the bible on animal tracks for many years]. Elbroch, Mark.](https://static.documents.pub/doc/80x56/5ec7905416bba61ea9231994/photo-cynthia-wolf-amigos-bravos-a-field-guide-to-animal-tracks-peterson-field.jpg)
